Beth Martinez Humenik

Republican

AGE
61RESIDENCE
Thornton (22 years in Thornton, 9 years in Westminster)HOMETOWN
Fort CollinsPROFESSION
EducatorEDUCATION
B.A. and M.S., Colorado State UniversityFAMILY
Husband, Mike, Married for 30 yearsEXPERIENCE
Thornton City Council (2007-2015); Colorado State Senate (2015-current)WEBSITEbethforco.comFACEBOOKSenBethMartinezHumenikTWITTERSenatorBethCO24

Why are you running for office?
I am running for re-election because of my commitment to serving the people I represent: my neighbors, my community and my state. I have dedicated my life to public service. First, as an educator, then as a member of the Thornton City Council and now as a member of the Colorado Senate. I believe that residents in Adams County and Colorado deserve leaders who are willing to work across the aisle to achieve results that make a difference for those they serve. 75% of the bills that I have sponsored since my election to the senate in 2014 have become law. In our current political environment, bipartisanship is becoming increasingly rare, but it is necessary to be able to make a positive impact for Colorado.

What three policy issues set you apart from your opponent(s)?
I support funding our schools to provide our children with great teachers and the quality education that every child deserves. I will continue to work with our local school districts to put more emphasis on school curriculum aimed at student success so that our children are prepared for the future, not just passing tests.

I oppose increasing taxes and fees on our hard-working Colorado residents and families. We can address our transportation, healthcare and education needs without placing added burden on taxpayers if we prioritize our budget better and limit the growth of government.

I strongly believe that, as a state, we must put more of an emphasis on the availability of mental health services. That’s why I initiated a suicide prevention and crisis training program for all Colorado school personnel in order to assist and protect our children. I have also worked on legislation help youth and adults in the correctional system with mental health, behavior health and substance disorders with the resources they need in order to integrate successfully back into their communities.

What are the biggest areas of agreement between you and your opponent(s)?
My opponent and I are both committed to making the Colorado capitol building a safer and more inclusive workplace as members of the bipartisan Legislative Workplace Interim Study Committee.

Where would you like to see Colorado’s transportation system in two decades, and what’s the best way to get there? What’s your position on the competing state transportation initiatives?
Our transportation system is not adequate for our current population and will certainly not be sufficient for our growing population 20 years from now. Deteriorating roads and traffic congestion have a negative impact on the economy and commerce in Colorado, which hurts quality of life. Our transportation needs must be addressed and prioritized in the budget. I believe that this can be done without raising taxes on our hard-working families. Proposition 109 asks for transportation dollars in a prioritized budget on an annual basis long-term which is more palatable to my constituents than raising taxes that take more of their hard-earned income.

Denver Post Voter Guide

What role, if any, should the state legislature play in managing the impact of growth along the Front Range and ensuring that rural areas share in the benefits?
As a state, we must ensure that our infrastructure can keep up with our constantly growing population. We need to invest in new water storage projects throughout the state that will sufficiently meet Colorado’s current and future water needs. The state must also allow for growth while maintaining our roads, bridges and mass transit systems. In addition, we need Construction Litigation Reform to provide for more attainable housing for current residents and future generations. These efforts would mutually benefit all areas of our great state.

Colorado’s health insurance exchange and Medicaid expansion have given hundreds of thousands more residents coverage, but health care remains a top concern in state polls. Affordability and access are particularly challenging in remote areas. Where should the state go on this issue, and what will you do to get us there?
All Coloradans who wish to have high-quality, patient-centered healthcare and affordable insurance premiums, should have access. Health care remains a top concern in our state considering the inability for many Coloradans to afford coverage, which limits access to the system. While I will continue to defend patients with pre-existing conditions and young adults who choose to be covered by their parents’ health plan, we should be focused on improving the quality of healthcare and looking at ways to reduce costs. We need to continue to work on increasing pricing transparency among insurers, providers, pharmacy benefit managers and allow all stakeholders to come up with innovative ways to promote healthy lifestyles and prevent unnecessary as well as costly emergency room visits. I would like to see better integration of behavioral, mental and physical health to allow for whole person care while improving the efficacy of taxpayer dollars in our growing Medicaid system by evaluating administrative processes and educating patients. In addition, expanding services such as telehealth and mobile clinics will allow all Coloradans to receive excellent health care regardless of where they live.

Faith Winter

Democrat

AGE
38RESIDENCE
Westminster (13 years)HOMETOWN
LittletonPROFESSION
National Training Director for VoteRunLeadEDUCATION
BS Environmental Management, with a minor in Biology, Redlands UniversityFAMILY
Two children that attend Adams 12 schools, Tobin (9) and Sienna (7), along with her husband Mark, and their dogs and cat.EXPERIENCE
Program Assistant – Inland Temporary Homes; Field Organizer – Green Corps; National Program Director – Center for Environmental Citizenship; National Field Director – The White House Project; Program Director – Colorado Conservation Voters/Conservation Colorado; City Councilor – City of Westminster; Mayor Pro Tem – City of Westminster ; Founding Executive Director – Emerge Colorado; District 35 – Colorado House of Representatives; National Training Director – VoteRunLead; Owner – Moxie StrategiesWEBSITEfaithwinter.comFACEBOOKFaithWinterCOTWITTER@FaithWinterCO

Why are you running for office?
Every night I would pray for the same two things – for more waterfalls and to end homelessness. In college, I continued to work on these issues by getting my degree in Environmental Management and working at a homeless shelter. During my time at the homeless shelter, I successfully found many families affordable housing. However, there were many families that could not find housing because they didn’t make three times the rent. That’s when I realized that while this was important work, it was a temporary bandage to a broken system. So, I started doing the work to change the system by bringing people together to solve problems. While doing work to protect the environment, I met Joan Fitz-Gerald and she asked me to run for office because of my hard work ethic and passion. I realized I could have a larger impact on these issues as a public servant. I spent 11 years serving in public office, working hard for hard-working Coloradans. The reason I am running for the state senate is because whether we are talking about protecting our environment or affordable housing, the current leadership in the Colorado Senate is not representing Coloradans’ values.

What three policy issues set you apart from your opponent(s)?
1. Paid Family Leave: In Colorado, one out of four moms goes back to work two weeks after giving birth and many cancer patients skip chemotherapy because they can’t afford to lose their job. I know Coloradans can be both responsible employees and family members.

2. Education: Adequately funding our public schools.

3. Climate Change: Climate change is real and impacting our state. We are in our fourth worst drought in our state’s recorded history. For our farmers and ranchers, for our tourism industry, for our economy, for our children – the time to act is now.

What are the biggest areas of agreement between you and your opponent(s)?
We both believe that we want to make college campuses safer for women, free from harassment and assault. As former city councilors, we both value local control, and know that some of our best solutions come from our local communities.

Where would you like to see Colorado’s transportation system in two decades, and what’s the best way to get there? What’s your position on the competing state transportation initiatives?
In the next two decades, Colorado needs to address our woefully underfunded transportation system. There is no silver bullet solution to solving our needs. We need to repair damaged roads and bridges; we need to add new lane miles; we need to expand choices in public transportation, and also embrace new advances in technology.

Last session, as the House Prime Sponsor for Senate Bill 1, I broke through partisan gridlock to pass the single largest transportation funding in over a decade. Part of that agreement is an ongoing commitment of general fund money that we must keep in place. In the future, I will do exactly what I did for SB 1 – I will listen, I will bring people together and find a path forward for creative solutions. It is now up to the voters to decide what level of investment they want to make in transportation. I do not think that Fix Our Damn Roads is a responsible solution for Colorado, because it jeopardizes education funding for decades to come. Let’s Go Colorado is a significant investment in our infrastructure that would make a large improvement in addressing our transportation needs. I respect the voters’ decision on whether to move forward with that investment or not.

What role, if any, should the state legislature play in managing the impact of growth along the Front Range and ensuring that rural areas share in the benefits?
The legislature has a significant role to play in Colorado’s growth.

1. Making sure everyone can afford to live here. That starts with creating an affordable housing trust fund. Affordable housing issues are not limited to the Front Range. We need to ensure that our affordable housing programs are flexible in design to meet the needs of urban, suburban, and rural Colorado.

2. Investment in infrastructure, from transportation, to the Colorado Water Plan, to new schools and school repairs and improvements. The investment must reach all four corners of our state.

3. Keep our Colorado way of life by ensuring that we are protecting our open spaces and public lands. The outdoor recreation industry is one of the main drivers our rural economies.

Colorado’s health insurance exchange and Medicaid expansion have given hundreds of thousands more residents coverage, but health care remains a top concern in state polls. Affordability and access are particularly challenging in remote areas. Where should the state go on this issue, and what will you do to get us there?
When tackling affordability of and access to care, no one solution will fix every challenge we face. Thus, it is critical to examine the system as a whole and find creative, innovative, and Colorado based solutions to address this problem. First, Colorado should consider ways to provide new lower cost insurance plans on the individual market. One solution to consider is leveraging existing efficiencies in our Medicaid system to offer a state backed health insurance plan that increases competition and lowers cost. Colorado should also look for ways to save money within the healthcare system. Insurance companies are required to spend $.80 of every dollar brought in through premiums, on care. If we reduce how much is spent in care we will help drive down premiums across the state of Colorado. We can address this through further transparency related to the cost of health care services and pharmaceuticals, so consumers can select the lowest cost service when deciding on non-emergency care. Additionally, we need to start addressing the shortage of health care providers especially in rural Colorado. By investing in incentives and support to providers looking to locate in rural Colorado, we will increase access to those living in rural Colorado. Another way to address the workforce shortage is by leveraging new and existing technologies. Colorado has authorized the use of tele health for mental health services, but we need better infrastructure to make sure everyone has access to it. We need to ensure that the money made available in the Broadband bill last session gets to the communities to lay the infrastructure where it is most needed. Finally, Colorado should invest in programs that help ensure every person, especially our children have foundational supports to stay healthy and reduce the need on the healthcare system. Ensuring everyone has access to healthy foods, safe ways to bike and walk throughout the community, stable housing, quality education and other proven ways to address the socioeconomic disparities in health, we will help decrease the prevalence of preventable diseases and utilization of the system for these services.

Don Osborn

Libertarian

AGE
60RESIDENCE
Eastlake (60 years)HOMETOWN
AuroraPROFESSION
ConstructionEDUCATION
Bachelors of Economics from UNC, and an Associate’s of Science at Front Range Community College.FAMILY
YesEXPERIENCE
YesWEBSITEdonosbornforcosenate.blogspot.comFACEBOOK
n/aTWITTER
n/a

Why are you running for office?
My primary goal will be to reign in expensive and inefficient government programs, drastically change how healthcare is delivered and paid for, radically change higher education, and generally reduce government burdens.

What three policy issues set you apart from your opponent(s)?
I see the need for radical overhauls in education, criminal justice, and healthcare.

What are the biggest areas of agreement between you and your opponent(s)?
I will not speak for my opponents but I believe that I am far more radical with my beliefs for major changes.

Where would you like to see Colorado’s transportation system in two decades, and what’s the best way to get there? What’s your position on the competing state transportation initiatives?
I would like to see the utopian ride sharing services that I keep reading about that promises to eliminate the need for public transportation. Short of that I support Initiative 167.

What role, if any, should the state legislature play in managing the impact of growth along the Front Range and ensuring that rural areas share in the benefits?
Are we sure that rural areas want a share of the “benefits”?

Colorado’s health insurance exchange and Medicaid expansion have given hundreds of thousands more residents coverage, but health care remains a top concern in state polls. Affordability and access are particularly challenging in remote areas. Where should the state go on this issue, and what will you do to get us there?
The need for radical change is obvious. I support:

2) Working to end provider collusion created by “networks” caused by the Non Profits Act .

3) Effectively neuter the American Medical Association.

4) Enacting a health care consumer bill of rights.

Adam Matkowsky

Unafilliated

AGE
47RESIDENCE
Thornton (12 years)HOMETOWN
Queens, New YorkPROFESSION
Police OfficerEDUCATION
Associates in General StudiesFAMILY
Married 29 years, two daughters aged 26 and 17.EXPERIENCE
I’m a Marine, a Police Officer for 20 years, current Thornton City Councilman, and unaffiliated candidate. I’ve spent my entire adult life serving my Country and my community.WEBSITEadammatkowsky4co.comFACEBOOKAdamMatkowskyForColoradoTWITTER@adammatkowsky

Why are you running for office?
Our political system is broken. Both political parties are going to extremes and these extremes are threatening what’s great about this Country. The Country I proudly served my whole adult life both in war and on the beat.

This political divide and hardening of positions is making it very difficult to address real issues by finding workable solutions through compromise. The two political party system needs a shakeup. I want to provide that shakeup.

The Senate will be made up of about the same number of Republicans and Democrats. Just one credible independent, like me, can ensure neither party have an outright majority and then some level of consensus would be required. The residents of Senate District 24 can help make this happen by electing me.

What three policy issues set you apart from your opponent(s)?
While not directly a policy issue, what truly sets me apart from my opponents is the fact that I am running as an unaffiliated. The fact is when a person is elected to the Legislature they are beholden to their political party and often times are forced to vote how the party wants them to vote. Not how they want to or how their constituents want them to vote. That is what’s wrong with politics at the state level these days and why I’m running as an Unaffiliated not beholden to either political party.

Public Safety. I’m the only one of the candidates that truly understands from firsthand experience how tough a job our public safety professionals have and why they need to be fully supported at the Legislature.

What are the biggest areas of agreement between you and your opponent(s)?
I think all of the candidates are in agreement that we need to do something to reduce the opioids problem we have in this state and to raise teacher pay.

I generally agree with my Republican opponent on not unnecessarily increasing taxes and fees and the importance of the Legislature working with local governments.

Where would you like to see Colorado’s transportation system in two decades, and what’s the best way to get there? What’s your position on the competing state transportation initiatives?
I support Let’s Go Colorado and oppose Build our Damn Roads. I would like to see a transportation system where Colorado families are not forced to spend an extra hour in their cars instead of with their families.

The two political parties have been unable to come together to help fix this obvious issue, which is why there are not one but two citizen led proposals on the ballot. This is unacceptable. If both political parties actually work together on this issue, then results can happen. I helped fix 300 miles of roads in Thornton working with my fellow Council-members. I’ll work for the same in the Senate.

What role, if any, should the state legislature play in managing the impact of growth along the Front Range and ensuring that rural areas share in the benefits?
I see the State playing a limited supporting role in managing the growth along the Front Range. Cities and Counties in Colorado have a good grasp on their own growth limits. We should support them in regards to the roads and traffic conditions that come up along the way.

Colorado’s health insurance exchange and Medicaid expansion have given hundreds of thousands more residents coverage, but health care remains a top concern in state polls. Affordability and access are particularly challenging in remote areas. Where should the state go on this issue, and what will you do to get us there?
The State should mandate a minimum staffing requirement for ALL medical facilities that is higher than what it currently is. The waits at clinics and in ER lobbies is preposterous right now.

Local government (municipal and county) should be mandated to cover medical insurance costs from retirement to Medicare age. On average, most can’t afford to retire until Medicare age. Average cost of a family plan is $1,200 ($14,400 a year). In some professions working until this age can be unsafe.

More in Voter Guide 2018

New reports and studies continue to emerge on Proposition 112, the oil and gas setbacks measure, just days before election day on Tuesday. The high-stakes ballot issue has attracted millions of dollars on the campaign finance side as stakeholders on both sides of the issue try to convince voters of their arguments.